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Marks & Spencer has announced it is giving frontline staff a 15% bonus as they continue to work during the coronavirus pandemic.

The retail giant say frontline workers across stores and the supply chain who continue to work will receive an additional 15% pay reward "in recognition of the work they are doing to support their teams and the national effort to help customers access the products they need during these unprecedented times".

In the announcement on Wednesday, they also confirmed furloughed staff will receive full pay, with the company offering furloughing on a voluntary basis for anyone who has caring commitments or feels vulnerable to Covid-19.

Any worker who needs to self-isolate for seven to 14 days is able to do so full pay, while staff who are pregnant, aged 70+ or with the health conditions specified by the UK Government's Department of Health are already on leave for 12 weeks on full pay.

It comes after the retailer's clothing and home store operations were temporarily suspended last week, with outlet stores closing.

"We are actively encouraging social distancing in our foodhalls, and have already introduced a number of measures to help colleagues stay healthy and enable customers to shop for the essentials they need with confidence – from floor markings to the introduction of sneeze guards at till points. The latest measure is the introduction of reusable face shields, which will be distributed to our hard working teams this week.”

March has been the busiest month on record for supermarkets up and down the country as sales rose by 20.6% in the last four weeks, new data from Kantar has revealed.

Shops have sold £10.8bn worth of produce in the last four weeks, with people going to shops more often rather than spending more than they go.